On April 11, 2020, the Prime Minister held the 28th meeting of the Novel Coronavirus Response Headquarters at the Prime Minister’s Office.

At the meeting, the participants discussed the response to the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Following the discussion, the Prime Minister said,

“I would like to express my appreciation for great efforts made by citizens such as refraining from going out unless it is truly necessary and urgent and working from home, with the goal of reducing people to people contact by 70%, ideally by 80%, following the declaration of a state of emergency.

In order to move on from the state of emergency in one month, we must reduce people to people contact by 70%, ideally by 80%. To that end, it is essential that citizens extend an even greater level of cooperation.

We have received reports that, in the areas subject to the declaration, many companies have taken measures such as making all employees work from home in principle. In terms of attaining the 70% to 80% reduction target, however, the decrease in the number of commuters is still not sufficient. In this regard, all office work must be conducted from home in principle and, in cases that going office is absolutely necessary, the number of employees to do so must be reduced by a minimum of 70%. I instruct the relevant ministries to ensure, with a strong sense of urgency, that all business operators, including micro-, small-, and medium-sized ones, adhere to this request towards next week.

Regarding night entertainment districts, many cases of infections have already been confirmed. In addition to the areas subject to the declaration, the spread of infections in such districts is seen throughout the country. We must not allow a situation such that people move to other prefectures in response to the strong request for self-restraint in the 7 prefectures.

To that end, we have add a new request in the basic action policy that citizens refrain from going to bars, night clubs, karaoke venues, and live music clubs, as well as restaurants with waiting staff in those entertainment districts, with more frequent conditions of 3Cs (closed spaces, crowded places, and close-contact setting), in all prefectures, regardless of whether they are subject to the declaration, in accordance with Article 24, Paragraph 9 of the Act on Special Measures for Pandemic Influenza and New Infectious Diseases Preparedness and Response.

In the areas where a state of emergency has been declared, medical systems are being stretched. In addition to securing accommodation facilities for patients with mild or no symptoms, the government has dispatched Self-Defense Forces units to support the transfer of patients to these facilities and zoning inside the facilities, as well as capacity-building of the relevant personnel, among other efforts. I instruct to further accelerate those efforts, collaborating with prefectural governments, to reduce the burdens of healthcare workers.

Furthermore, we will provide push-mode support to ease the shortages of medical supplies at medical sites. By next week, we will distribute a total of 45 million surgical masks to medical institutions nationwide. In addition, we will distribute a further 10 million to these institutions in the seven prefectures.

Regarding medical gowns and face shields, I instruct that 1 million of each be distributed to the seven prefectures, subject to the degree of scarcity. As for N95 and KN95 masks, imports have decreased significantly and we are currently facing a very difficult situation. Nevertheless, we will deliver 70,000 masks within next week and 700,000 by the end of the month. In areas besides the seven prefectures, I instruct you to closely monitor the situations at medical sites and exert every effort to secure a supply of personal protective equipment.

At this very moment, healthcare workers are giving their all to protect lives in a severe situation, facing a high risk of infections. I would like to once again express my heartfelt appreciation for their efforts. Regarding the continued shortage of medical supplies across the country, in order to protect healthcare workers, we will continue to exert every effort to strengthen domestic production capacity, along with various assistance to enable scientific and efficient use of these supplies.

To date, we have been encouraging manufacturers in Japan, including those from other industries, to actively increase production, through providing subsidies boldly for capital investment, among other measures. I instruct to further strengthen efforts, making use of the recent economic measures, among other means, with the government working as one.

With the aim of reducing the risk of hospital-acquired infections, we will allow initial medical consultations via phone and online from next week. I instruct relevant ministries to do whatever possible so as to reduce the burdens on healthcare workers.

To overcome this state of emergency, the national and prefectural governments must strengthen their collaborative efforts, while citizens changing their behavior. I instruct you to listen to the voices and gather information broadly from the frontlines, and implement measures flexibly and expeditiously.”